The Washington PostDemocracy Dies in Darkness

These great apps don’t spy or clog your phone. Also they’re not apps.

Meet the web app, a hybrid of an app and a website. Here’s how to try them and why you should root for this underdog technology.

By
May 30, 2023 at 12:30 p.m. EDT
An illustration with apps and webpages.
(Illustration by Elena Lacey/The Washington Post)
10 min

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One morning last week, I ordered an egg sandwich and coffee from the Starbucks app on my phone. Except it wasn’t really an app.

This non-app app is a hybrid of a website and a conventional app, with features of each.